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Maybe the scales is wonky. I step off, pick it up, shake it (you will note that I have technical proficiency in spades) switch it off and back on, give it another shake just in case the first one wasn’t quite enough and place it carefully back on the floor making sure that it’s level and reset correctly.

Ok it says 0.00 before I step up. There it is again 65. Holy shit the last time I was this light I was running like….I can’t think of any funny simile so let’s just say I was running well. Really well. I was also biking well uphill but not so good on the flat.

The problem with the number this time is that it’s not as a result of a savage training and strict nutritional regime. It’s mostly the result of having a stomach bug that’s dragged on for a couple of weeks.

Still, I look down at my stomach and think that if I squint just a little bit I can see one or two bits of a six pack starting to peep through. Or maybe that’s just a couple of wrinkles…If only I’d actually done all of those crunches and planks I’d planned on…

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You know that feeling of being an absolute legend in your own underpants? When you’re not just “like a boss” but you are “The Boss” When you’re moving so fast that you’re only hitting the road in spots?

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Is a tri bike really faster than a road bike? And if so by how much? Is it just seconds or does it save you minutes? If you’re thinking of upgrading your bike for triathlon and don’t know which type would be best for you click on through for all the answers.

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It’s eight weeks to go to Ironman Texas. It’s my first time training for an early season race and although I’d always traditionally start training in January I wouldn’t normally be hitting the sort of hours I’ve been getting up to for the last couple of months.

It’s also been a very unusual build for me in that I’ve done almost all of my biking in the trainer and a lot of running in the treadmill. I’ve never cycled or run indoors as much in my entire life.

It sort of makes me think about why I do this sport. Is it just so that I can achieve a goal? With how I get there just being a function of attaining an outcome. Or is it because I love the lifestyle?

I always thought that I do this sport as much for the love of the training as I do it for enjoyment of the event itself. I love racing but I also love the training. I think this is important because the training is the much bigger part of it. The race is measured in hours. The training is measured in months and years.

I love the fitness and strength that comes with it. I also love the discipline. I love the process, the sense of achievement that all come from living the lifestyle of an athlete.

But this year has been a funny build so far. It’s probably the coldest winter I can remember ever training through. And maybe I’m getting soft but I think I’ve only been outdoors on the bike once in the last four months (excluding Lanza in January)

Despite the lack of riding outside I don’t think I’ve missed a single bike session this year. I’ve been on the turbo three, four or five times a week and have done a bunch of five hour days indoors. Something I’d probably only done a handful of times in my life before this year.

The training has almost become a means to an end. I quite enjoy the short, hard turbo sessions (short turbos are now measured in hours instead of minutes, it’s funny how a bunch of four and five hour sessions indoors can make a two to three hour turbo feel relatively short) But the five hour indoor rides have never quite gotten to be as enjoyable as five hours spent outdoors in the sun. Funny that.

Still, I’ve been getting through them. But it has made me think about why I’m doing this. The Ironman day and the Kona thing are hugely motivating but that’s always only been a part of it. The love of riding and running outdoors was almost a bigger driver.

I think I always get to this stage in March where I’m sick of a winter that won’t just fuck off. I suppose that because of targeting an early season race this year that feeling is just magnified.

Anyway that’s enough naval gazing. Let’s get on to the weeks training.

We’ve had weather warnings over the last twelve months that have been carried and promoted by the media that didn’t come anywhere near to occurring. Yellow or orange or red weather storm warnings which never came to pass.

The last one caused the shut down of most of the country.

The last warning that was. The storm itself never actually materialised.

As a result of the previous “boy crying wolf” weather disaster warning stories that didn’t happen I was sceptical of this one. In fact when I heard this round of stories of snow storms and red warnings I scoffed that I’d believe it when I saw it.

Wednesday arrived and along with it came the heaviest snowfall we’d seen in Dublin in about eight years. Myself and Ais ran into work with bags on our back but when we saw how bad the conditions actually were we decided that we would just open for an hour. Read More

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Frustratingly life can occasionally get in the way of triathlon and when it does it can be difficult to know what the best thing is to do. Should I try to catch up on those missed sessions? What do you do when you can’t fit in that three hour bike ride that’s in the plan?